Support of a Friend
by Klutzygirl33
Summary: Set post "You're Going To Miss Me When I'm Gone". Maura and Jane decide to raise the baby together and end up falling in love.


**I don't own Rizzoli and Isles and never will. No copyright infringement intended.**

_Author's Note_: Warning for character death (Frost). Was hoping they wouldn't follow the path of the books, but oh well. Hope you enjoy!

* * *

"Have you taken a test yet?" were the first words out of Maura's mouth after Jane dropped the bomb on her. She definitely hadn't expected those words to come out of her best friend's mouth.

"Working my way up to it." Jane was terrified of the answer either way. She wasn't sure if she was ready to be a mother. How could she take care of a baby? It was easy being an aunt – she could hand her nephew to someone else when he needed something.

"Jane, take a pregnancy test and find out for sure. Then we can talk about your next step." Maura smiled encouragingly at her.

"Can't you do a blood test or something?"

"It'll take longer, and I'm sure you'll want to find out sooner than that. I'll definitely confirm with a blood test, however, if it's positive." Maura grabbed Jane's hand and ushered her to the bathroom, picking up the bag with the pregnancy test boxes along the way.

Jane took a deep breath as she waited for the results and tightly gripped Maura's hand. "What am I going to do?"

Maura shrugged. "I don't know."

She snorted. "Thanks for that." And then the timer on her cell beeped. "Oh God."

"We can look together," Maura suggested. She was just as nervous about this as Jane was.

Jane shook her head. "Nah, I can look." She stood up and headed towards the sink. And when she saw the two pink lines on multiple pregnancy tests, tears fell from her eyes. "I'm definitely pregnant." Fuck, what was she supposed to do next?

Maura stood up and pulled her in for a hug. "Whatever you need, I'm in."

"Can you help me raise this baby?"

She didn't even have to think about it. "Of course! You are not going to do this alone, Jane. But what about Casey?" He deserved to be involved in his child's life.

"Maura, I was joking. And I'll tell Casey, but I don't expect anything from him." His job was obviously more important to him, something Jane didn't blame him for. It hurt, but she could deal with that.

"And I was serious. I want to help you." Maura patted her on the shoulder and the two women left the bathroom.

Jane was grateful and told her so. "I really appreciate your help – definitely going to need it in the next few months." Her support meant a lot.

"Well, your mom is going to be thrilled." Angela loved being a grandmother, and Maura was sure she'd be a little wary of the situation, but completely supportive.

"Can we not tell her for a while? I want to keep this to myself. And damn it, I need to make an appointment with my OB/GYN." Jane was not looking forward to that trip. She felt like an idiot for not making sure they were one hundred percent safe (and she knew that protection didn't always work, but she wasn't thinking rationally right now).

"Of course." Maura hugged her. She didn't understand why she was so upset about Jane's pregnancy – maybe on her best friend's behalf? But that didn't make any sense. She decided not to think about it for the time being and plunge into her role as supportive best friend.

The blood test Maura ran and Jane's OB/GYN confirmed the pregnancy. She was about six weeks along. "I definitely think I'm going to keep the baby." Jane had thought about her options, but she wanted to go ahead with this.

"I would have supported any decision you made," Maura informed her. She wouldn't have blamed Jane if she had decided to abort – it would have been the right decision. But Jane had chosen what she thought was best, and Maura was going to be excited for her.

And then tragedy struck just days later – Frost was killed after being involved in a car accident. Jane and Maura were talking about going out for lunch (the morning sickness wasn't so bad today, something she was thankful for) when Korsak broke the news. Jane saw the look on his face when he entered the room and froze. "What is it?"

Maura looked up as Korsak started to talk. "I just got a call from one of my friends. There was a car accident earlier." He swallowed before continuing. "Frost was killed instantly."

Jane let out a surprised cry and tears started streaming down her face. She grabbed onto Maura for support, and the two women started mourning together. "It'll be okay." Maura didn't believe it, but she had to say something so she could feel better.

Frost's funeral was held just three days later, and many showed up to celebrate his life (something his mother said he would have wanted, a statement his friends and co-workers agreed with). He had been well-loved by a lot of people in Boston.

"I'll miss him." Jane wasn't sure how they were going to handle having a new co-worker. It wasn't going to be an easy transition.

"We all will." Korsak smiled at her. He hadn't been expecting that call to come through, and he was still reeling from the tragic news. Life wasn't going to be the same.

They gathered together that night at the bar to drink in Frost's honor. Jane repeatedly faked it and handed hers over to Maura, who ended up extremely drunk by the end of the night. Angela was immediately suspicious. "You don't seem drunk."

Jane nervously laughed. "I didn't drink as much as everyone else did. Of course I don't seem drunk." She hoped her mother bought it.

Angela narrowed her eyes at her. "Don't think this is over." She'd confront her daughter later, but now was not the time. She had her suspicions about what was going on with Jane, but she wanted to be completely sure before she said something. And then Angela got her chance only two days later. Jane was over for dinner when something at the table didn't agree with her. She paled and bolted towards the bathroom. Angela followed her in.

Jane tried to dismiss her. "I'm fine, Ma. Just have the flu."

"Bullshit. How far along are you?"

She sighed. "Is it that obvious?"

"Jane, I've been pregnant three times – you can't fool me. Have you told Casey yet?" Angela was excited for her daughter, even though this pregnancy was obviously unplanned.

"I'm waiting." Jane was actually terrified to make that call and was putting it off as a result.

"You need to tell him and stop stalling. But congratulations!" Angela squealed and hugged her as soon as her daughter stood up.

"Thank you." Her mother's excitement was infectious.

Jane sat down next to Maura when they returned and tried to figure out what made her sick. "Are you okay?" Maura asked.

She nodded. "Yeah. I'm going to call Casey tomorrow. No more putting it off."

"Good." Maura was worried about Casey's reaction – was she going to be pushed out so the two of them could raise their baby together?

Jane finally worked up the courage to call her ex-boyfriend in the morning and tell him. "I'm pregnant, Casey."

Silence. "You're sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure. I'm keeping it, and you don't have to be involved. I know your work is important to you."

"That's not fair, Jane. And yes, this changes a lot of things, but I am planning on being involved in my kid's life. The plan does say the same, however." Casey hated that it had come to this and wish their relationship hadn't ended this way.

"Good. I'll call you later." Jane angrily hung up the phone and went to go find Maura – she always knew what to say to calm her down.

As soon as she hit the twelfth week of pregnancy, Jane went in for an ultrasound. Maura and Angela joined her at the appointment. "This is going to be amazing," Maura told her. She had seen (and done) ultrasounds before, but it was different this time around.

Hearing her baby's heartbeat for the first time was something Jane would remember forever. She couldn't believe she was actually carrying a bay inside of her. It was absolutely surreal. And now past the danger point, Jane decided to come clean to everybody, including those at work. Sean already knew because of Angela, but decided not to say anything until he heard the news from Jane herself. And after congratulating her, Jane was put on desk duty for the rest of her pregnancy. "I'm going to be bored," she whined.

"I'll keep you company." Maura beamed at Jane and sat down next to her. She had already decided to help with the nursery and wanted to make sure it was perfect.

"Sounds good, Maura." Jane couldn't believe how much Maura was involved sometimes, but she didn't mind. It was nice to have a friend by her side.

Jane was in her fifth month of pregnancy when Maura finally realized how she felt about her best friend. They were going through some of TJ's hand-me-downs (gender-neutral, since they wanted the sex to be a surprise) when it happened. Folding a onesie and joking with Jane, she gasped. "Oh my God."

A worried Jane looked up. "Are you okay? What is it?"

She shook her head. "It's nothing. I just realized I forgot something, but it'll be fine. I can pick it up later." Maura was in love with her best friend and had been for a while. How come she hadn't realized this sooner? And damn it, she needed to stop panicking or she'd make Jane suspicious.

Jane looked at her, confused, but let it go. "Okay then."

Maura tossed and turned in bed that night, trying to figure out her next step. Should she tell her and risk ruining their friendship? She didn't want that to happen. Maura wanted Jane in her life any way she could get her. She eventually decided she needed to be honest – it was the right thing to do. And if Jane didn't feel the same way, Maura would be content to stay friends with her. The next morning, she stopped by the apartment to talk to Jane. "Sit down."

"Is this bad news? Maura, tell me," she demanded. She was terrified something had happened. Frost's death had shaken everyone up.

Maura stared at her shoes for a few seconds. "I realized something yesterday, something I should have realized before. And I know it's probably the worst possible time to tell you this, but I have to say it. I'm in love with you, Jane."

Jane opened her mouth to respond, but kept closing it. "I'll be right back," she said and then headed towards her bedroom.

Convinced that she had just been rejected, Maura reacted irrationally and started crying. She was about to leave for work when Jane returned. "Don't you go anywhere, Maura Isles!"

Startled, Maura turned back around. "What were you doing?"

"I had to think for a second. You surprised the hell out of me, but I feel the same way about you. I guess I was just scared to admit it. Probably why I wavered on marrying Casey in the first place. And deciding to raise this baby together felt like a huge step, but it's what I wanted. I love you too, Maura." For the first time in months, Jane didn't feel stressed or scared about her future. She couldn't feel any of those things with Maura by her side.

Maura just grinned and laughed. "I'm going to kiss you now."

"Go for it." And then Jane oomphed when her best friend (girlfriend now) did exactly that.

When Jane and Maura revealed their relationship (well, actually, Angela walked in on them and discovered the two women making out), nobody was surprised. "I just want you to be happy," Angela told Jane after she and Maura jumped apart.

"Thanks." Jane sniffled and then ducked away to pretend she wasn't crying.

Their relationship sped ahead after that, and Jane moved into Maura's place only three weeks later. They stuck close to each other and cuddled in bed that night. Maura placed a hand on the curve of Jane's swelling abdomen and felt the baby kick. "This baby loves keeping you awake at night."

"And he – or she – calms down when you talk. They love the sound of your voice." So did Jane, actually. Maura always managed to soothe her.

"Hey you. I'm your other mom, and I need you to stop kicking so much so we can sleep. Can you do that?" She looked up to see Jane in tears. "Jane, what's wrong?"

She shook her head. "Nothing. You just referred to yourself as the baby's other mom, and that's always been true. I wanted you involved from the very beginning." Damn these pregnancy hormones.

"Well, I've felt that way ever since you told me you suspected you were pregnant." Maura just hadn't realized what it meant at the time.

A few months later, Jane woke up in the middle of the night (nothing new) only to cry out in pain when a contraction took a hold of her body. Maura immediately startled awake and took her to the hospital when the contractions started coming five minutes apart.

Maura and Angela were in the delivery room as Jane gave birth to a daughter, Isabella Joan Rizzoli. The newborn whined when Jane shifted her around to get a better grip. "Calm down over there. I know today's been traumatic, but it's okay now," Jane soothed.

"I'm proud of you." Angela adored her granddaughter and couldn't wait to spoil her rotten. She was going to spend as much time as she could with TJ and Isabella (which would be easy, considering Isabella was going to live with them).

"Thanks, Ma. But you're having the next one. No way am I going through this again." Labor (and the last few months of pregnancy) was not her friend.

"I'll think about it." Maura couldn't even think of having another baby right now, though. She was too busy being mesmerized by her daughter. She loved her so much.

Jane carefully shifted so she could lean over and kiss her girlfriend. "Love you. Thanks for being here this entire time."

"You don't have to thank me, but you're welcome. I loved every minute of it." Maura carefully scooped Isabella out of Jane's arms and started cooing at the baby.

Casey stopped by for a visit once everyone was at home and settled in. He reassured Jane and Maura that he planned to be involved in Isabella's life, but he wouldn't interfere with their parenting style. The two of them were pleased with that.

"I love being an uncle," Frankie commented as he handed his niece back to Maura shortly after Casey left.

"Are you going to knock someone up out of wedlock too?" an amused Angela questioned.

He scoffed. "No. That's definitely not going to happen. And Tommy and Lydia are married now so their situation isn't relevant anymore."

"Good point," she conceded. Tommy and Jane were happy with Lydia and Maura, and that was a blessing. They had found women they wanted to spend the rest of their lives with, and she couldn't wait to see who Frankie fell in love. Hopefully, there wouldn't be any drama.

Maura and Jane soon adjusted to being parents and they appreciated Isabella's impact on their lives. Jane's pregnancy had been the catalyst for the two women to finally admit how they felt about each other. And Angela secretly hoped there'd be another wedding soon, one her granddaughter could be a part of.


End file.
